Woodland Plants

There was a time when I was trying to figure out how to make oil paintings of woodland plants. I dreamed that there were trilliums growing outside my home, and that dream inspired me to search for trilliums on the rural island where I was living. When I asked around to find out who might be growing them, I was led to a woman who was growing trilliums in her woodland garden. The plants in her garden are the models for this series of paintings.


I began by making black and white paintings because I needed to concentrate my efforts on painting light and dark values without the added complexity of color. 

I focused on how the leaves seemed to be undulating and emerging from the shadows of the forest floor. I started by painting back to front so that the foreground leaves would overlap the leaves in the background. To reinforce the lightest lights, I then moved my brush from the outer tips of leaves and petals inward towards the stems, allowing some leaves to disappear into the shadows. 

Study for Woodland Plants (False Solomon Seal)

2005

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

$750.00

Study for Woodland Plants (Trilliums)

2005

12 x 12

oil on canvas

$750.00

I went on to paint a series of woodland plants in color.

Woodland Plants (False Solomon Seal, Bracken Fern)

2005

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

$750.00

Woodland Plants (Trilliums, Sword Fern, False Solomon Seal)

2005

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

$750.00

Woodland Plants (False Solomon Seal, Sword Fern, Bracken Fern, Oxalis)

2005

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

SOLD

Woodland Plants (Trilliums, Bracken Fern, Fiddleheads)

2005

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

$750.00

Furled (Fiddleheads), detail

2006-2007

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

Furled (Fiddleheads and Embryo)

2006-2007

oil on canvas

12 x 12 inches

$750.00